In my youth I was a devout follower of socialist ideology, being a member of my local trade union.
Since then I have always kept a close interest in politics and trade unionism.
Having said that, never in my lifetime have I witnessed such a high-profile politician, utter such a damning indictment of corruption and self-serving principles, upon previous presidents of America, including those in the immediate vicinity where I am sure they cringed in disbelief at what they were hearing.
Personally I was overjoyed at hearing Mr Trump’s justified tirade of condemnation on the ‘establishment’ who have had it the way they wanted for far too long.
Politicians and the media were Mr Trump’s target and rightly so, as both know full well the part they play in covering up financial corruption.
Yes, the establishment, the media in particular, will not take this deserved condemnation lying down. Perhaps when a few pay the price of their misdemeanours, they will then give the public a service that we can all be proud of.
HARRY STEPHENSON
Kircubbin, Co Down
Britain exiting EU may encourage others to leave the club
BRITISH prime minister Theresa May has said: “we do not want to return to the borders of the past”, when referring to Northern Ireland.
However, there may well be borders of the future. The notion that any country can leave the single market and not have different customs rules is a fallacy.
Northern Ireland will change following Brexit and Sinn Féin know it all too well. Britain is essentially going into competition with the EU in deciding its own trade rules, rather than having them decided by Brussels. Britain made its position clear a long time ago when it did not want to be part of a federal system.
The crunch has come in the shape of Brexit when the British said enough is enough. There are now countries lining up to do business with the United Kingdom, who will have the opportunity to do business with a country they once could not because of iron-fisted single market rules.
Britain has opened new doors with Brexit, where they no longer have the myriad of single market rules pulling them down and bureaucratising trade agreements. It may well be the case that other current EU countries will follow suit in getting out and doing their own deals if Britain is successful. Britain exited the old ERM currency system and it did just fine without it, despite all the EU pressure to stay in.
Britain should be not be underestimated in its reach across the globe and its very strong relationship with north America and Asia-Pacific where economic cycles are more in line with it, than a difficult EU single market and its domino effect on all member states.
Britain does not want to be locked into single market and suffer that incessant onslaught of economic migrants. That is fair enough and the Republic has felt the same way at times too in relation to emigration and the Eurozone. The Republic is currently waiting with bated breath for the EU courts to adjudicate the decision by the EU commission to pull up Apple for its tax status in the Irish state and issues to do with illegal state aid.
If the ruling goes against Apple and the Republic, it may well be the case that the Republic will begin its own divorce proceedings against the EU. The Republic will have to open up its books on all its foreign-direct giants soon in any case, after securing only a temporary stay on doing so from the EU.
This is something that will develop a very different attitude to the EU from the Republic, as it’s doing now in the case of Apple. They have been identified as one company in the Republic that is not tax compliant and in breach of competition rules. It will then be in the land of the ironic after abhorring the Brexit decision.
When the Republic did the next-to-nothing tax deal with Apple, the EU was a very different place and only had a fraction of the power it now has over member countries. Britain’s decision may not be popular with the pro-EU lobby, but over time it will be seen that Britain decision to reassert its own rules may have many outweighing benefits which may encourage others to leave the club?
MAURICE FITZGERALD
Shanbally, Co Cork
Deaglán’s column is breath of fresh southern air
The Deaglán de Bréadún column is a breath of fresh southern air blowing into the northern centric cesspit that passes for politics at Stormont.
A particular example, his January 16 piece on the glut of Sinn Féin talent in the Dáil in stark contrast to the sparse subs bench available to the party in the north.
For me, meaningful politics in the south has created an element of natural selection that has brought the best of Irish people to the fore in all the parties, real power and purpose attracting the cream of our youth. Compare this to the sick counties where potential political recruits are turned off by reservation pettiness and the poisoned chalice of sharing out English dole money.
Why would any able Ulster person serve a long, thankless apprenticeship only to end up as Westminster’s purser on a six-county barge?
Whatever you think of Martin McGuinness’s decisions over recent years there’s no denying his ability and statesmanship, he will be a hard act to follow. His stature exacerbates Sinn Féin’s personnel problem. It makes you wonder (as an all Ireland party) why Sinn Féin haven’t transferred (probably in manacles) some of their star performers up from Dublin. I mean what a coup that would be. It would irritate less evolved unionists to distraction and remind nationalists and republicans of the only chamber that counts, in the same way that the dour northern voice of Gerry Adams reminds the Dáil’s partial Irelanders that our orphan counties still form a lump under the carpet.
Hopefully, Deaglán’s contributions will embarrass alleged nationalist columnists here that their constant negativity about the heartfelt aspirations of we dispossessed Irish women and men are despised and that if they would lift their heads out of the Stormont mire more often and look south for inspiration their words are less likely to stink.
GERARD HERDMAN
Belfast BT11
Champion of voters’ rights
When the people of Upper Bann voted in the 2016 Assembly Elections one of the big stories that emerged was that the SDLP’s Dolores Kelly had lost out to Sinn Féin. It was obvious that those who voted to accomplish this had not been following assembly politics.
Had they been they would have found that in Dolores Kelly the nationalist people of Upper Bann had a true champion of their rights. Dolores was a fearless assembly member that both the DUP and Sinn Féin were glad to see the back of.
Since May 2016 not one month has gone by without yet another scandal being revealed. It is at times like these the nationalist voters miss the strength and courage of Dolores Kelly.
The nationalist people of Upper Bann must not repeat the mistake they made in May 2016.
P McKENNA
Co Armagh
Reverse Kadcyla decision
It is devastating to hear that Kadcyla – a crucial life-extending treatment for women with incurable secondary breast cancer – faces being withdrawn from the NHS, following the failure of NICE and drugs manufacturer Roche to reach an agreement.
Kadcyla can offer patients precious extra months – even years – of good quality time with their loved ones, with fewer side effects than other treatments. It is available in many other countries including France, Germany and Australia and unless NICE’s draft decision is overturned next month, this fantastic medical advance will bypass patients in England forever.
That’s why I’ve backed Breast Cancer Now’s campaign to #KeepKadcyla, which calls on NICE and Roche to urgently reach a deal to ensure patients in England are not denied this very effective treatment. There is very little time left for this decision to be reversed and I urge NICE and Roche to do everything in their power to keep this drug available.
ALAN MURRAY
Belfast BT7
